8 Wrestlers Fired By WWE After Major PPVs

4. Bart Gunn (WrestleMania XV)

Big Cass Money In The Bank 2018
WWE.com

One of the most frequently peddled pieces of inaccurate wrestling received wisdom is that Bart Gunn was 'punished' for daring to oust intended winner Steve Williams from WWE's daft Brawl For All tournament, lined up as the next tomato can for Eric 'Butterbean' Esch to crush at WrestleMania XV.

Crush Gunn Esch did, but it was only as guaranteed as Williams' assumed victory. The former Smoking Gunn, in 'accidentally' winning the idiotic, legitimate combat competition, had proven his relative boxing credentials, and the idea to capitalise on it was the Butterbean bout. According to Jim Ross, both men were rewarded handsomely for the fight; not a bad night's work on either guy's part, given it lasted less than 40 seconds.

Presumably, WWE had been hoping for something more competitive - even though it never seemed especially likely.

That said, Bart was left humiliated even if that hadn't been the intention, and any value his proven MMA prowess had possessed was totally wiped as clean as his clock. With creative stumped for ideas, Gunn was let go immediately after WrestleMania.

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Editorial Team

Benjamin was born in 1987, and is still not dead. He variously enjoys classical music, old-school adventure games (they're not dead), and walks on the beach (albeit short - asthma, you know). He's currently trying to compile a comprehensive history of video game music, yet denies accusations that he purposefully targets niche audiences. He's often wrong about these things.